A Miracle on Cable

Ae-ta-mi clicked "recommend" on every single review post. Then, with trembling hands, she began writing one of her own.

IP 85.152, who had been moderating the gallery all night, read every last post that kept flooding in. Not one skipped. All of them.

And among them, the post with the most recommendations was this one.

"Someone here actually knows how to interpret a work.... Figures. Only masterpiece viewers flock to masterpiece dramas, after all."

It was a thoughtful, high-quality post worthy of IP 85.152's refined tastes. She smiled faintly.

Click.

IP 85.152 reposted the piece to a community already blazing with Gimyodam chatter. And sure enough, the comments began piling up at once.

That was when it happened.

"...Huh?"

IP 85.152 rubbed her eyes in disbelief.

"What?"

IP 85.152 rubbed her eyes a second time. The works Seonwoo Seon-uk had ever praised this highly could be counted on one hand. Every last one of them was universally acknowledged as an immortal classic.

"...Insane."

IP 85.152 finally understood. Gimyodam had just been added to the legendary "Seonwoo Seon-uk Masterpiece List."

The PR team at JC ENM stared blankly at their monitors. Beyond the windows, dawn was slowly breaking. The pitch-black office grew brighter by the minute.

"Rookie Shin...."

"If you drink any more coffee, you're going to die, sir...."

Team Leader Hong covered his face with both hands, unable to even look at the brilliant sun rising over the forest of buildings. His body was exhausted, but his mind had never been sharper.

"All right, everyone. Let's check it together... Now."

This was the moment of the final battle. Time to see the last report card for Gimyodam.

Everyone clutched their nerves tight. The ratings had already broken 20%. Even so, expectation pressed down on every inch of their bodies.

"One... two... three...!"

Click.

And so they checked Gimyodam's final ratings.

"24...!"

"Peak viewership, 28.7%!"

The papers scattered across the office went flying toward the ceiling. As the documents fluttered and drifted down, they felt exactly like the confetti at an awards ceremony.

The miracle of cable.

It could be explained in that single line.

Hundreds of articles came pouring out in the immediate wake of Gimyodam's finale. Evening passed into the small hours, morning came, then another day after that — and even once the days grew empty of Gimyodam, the articles never stopped.

A work whose polish had been certified by the great Seonwoo Seon-uk himself. A drama showered with public acclaim. An unprecedented gamble from a cable network that had never attempted anything like it.

And for Jegal Rok, the grand blueprint he had drawn was only just beginning.

"Yes, this is JC ENM."

"Check the fax! We're blocking all interview requests from here on!"

The JC ENM PR team, having run a high-intensity marathon for the two months Gimyodam was on air, had no time to rest even now.

This wasn't water seeping in anymore. A tidal wave was crashing down.

Jegal Rok had sold the distribution rights for Gimyodam to local television in Taiwan — with the added condition that it also air on TWTV, the region's largest streaming platform.

Step by step, he was building Gimyodam's overseas fanbase. From Taiwan to Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, then on to Singapore, where Netholics had already planted its flag. And after that — to Japan, where the Korean Wave was surging once again thanks to Do Gyeo-ul's Beyond the Closed Door.

"Yep! So we'd appreciate it if you'd pass the word along to the other reporters too!"

Rookie Shin hung up with a smile. Thanks to overseas viewers hungry for K-drama content, the InTube view counts were already climbing on their own.

Every last clip from Gimyodam kept riding the algorithm, seizing the hearts of InTube viewers one after another.

And thus, at JC ENM—

The first broadcast company ever to reach one million subscribers.

"Huh? Team Leader! Wait a second!"

Someone shouted urgently. Rookie Shin, who had been gazing at the InTube screen with a contented smile, perked up his ears too.

"A Han Yeo-reum fan cafe just got created!"

"What!"

Before he knew it, Rookie Shin was rushing to Team Leader Hong's desk.

The fan cafe had finally been born. Twenty-seven members. A tiny, precious number — but the JC ENM PR office staff exchanged glances.

"...That's a hundred-to-one ratio right there."

The core fans had arrived.

"Yeo-reum-ah!"

"Give us a hand wave!"

I was currently savoring the full taste of popularity. This was the Music N studio, and I waved to my fans, whose numbers had swelled dramatically.

"So cute-!"

Say it louder for me, please.... Louder.... No matter how loudly you shout, it's not enough....

'Of course, not all of them are my fans.'

Most of them had come to see other idols. But they kept looking my way, talking to me, calling my name — which meant!

'They could become my fans any day now!'

Smiling, I shot them a finger heart. Several women in the crowd beamed back at me.

'I'd love it if this nudged my image toward "Han Yeo-reum the fanservice queen."'

My appearance video from the Faster Than the Law stage greetings had gotten a pretty good response. Same with that campaign pledge video. From now on, every time someone searched my name on InTube, I hoped a brand-new video would be waiting....

"That wraps up Part 1! We'll take a short break and head into Part 2!"

Before I knew it, Part 1 of Music N was over. I waved one last time on my way toward the waiting room.

"See you in a bit!"

Back in the waiting room, I was drinking water when — sure enough — Seo I-deun let out a gasp of amazement.

"Have you checked your follower count? Whoa, jeez. How is it climbing this fast?"

"How many am I at right now?"

"See for yourself."

Seo I-deun had become my fan after Gimyodam's final episode — to the point of personally tracking my follower growth for me. I looked at the screen he held out.

"Seven hundred seventy thousand...!"

At this rate, wouldn't I hit one million in no time? I was about to lose my mind to the dizzying, tangible rush of popularity—

"Oh, and the Le-el Style Awards are coming up soon. You'll be running into senior Ki Joo-ye there, won't you?"

—when I snapped myself back to my senses.

"Is she really going to be there?"

"...That's what I hear. But knowing that senior's personality...."

Seo I-deun's face darkened, as if he were reliving the PTSD Ki Joo-ye had inflicted on him.

"She'll be preparing a blood vengeance...."

Seated in her waiting room, Ki Joo-ye slammed her tablet PC down as if throwing it. The portal sites were still flooded with nothing but praise for Gimyodam. With no incidents of note, it was only natural that attention would lock onto the highest-rated hit of the season.

'Top Class is done — completely swallowed whole.'

Her styling as the chaebol family's youngest granddaughter had flickered briefly, for just a moment, before Gimyodam properly took off — and then it was gone.

'...And after that, the entire fashion industry's focus went straight to Joo Joon-seo!'

Styled to the absolute limit of flamboyance — and somehow, that delinquent character pulled it off perfectly. The torn shirts, the necklace threaded with rings, the hidden backstory — fans were dissecting every nanometer of it, and their numbers kept multiplying.

'If my results amount to only this much, my push for my next project could get cut in half....'

Ki Joo-ye sized up the situation with cold clarity.

'Damn it... this is infuriating.'

She turned to the coordinator beside her.

"Unnie. You confirmed Han Yeo-reum's name is on the Le-el Style Awards lineup, right?"

"Yeah, Joo-ye-ya.... She's definitely attending. I heard she's even working with Le-el next month — a cover shoot."

"Did I ask about any of that? Running your mouth about things I never brought up. You're ruining my mood."

"Sorry...."

Ever since that article came out — the one where she'd worn the same outfit as Han Yeo-reum and gotten a completely different reception — Ki Joo-ye had been grinding her teeth at her.

These days, she could feel it: the tide was turning, and not in her favor.

'This is a fight over the pie itself.'

If Han Yeo-reum fully cemented her position like this, Ki Joo-ye's own share of the pie would only shrink. Photo-call entrance order, product sponsorships, PPL placements in upcoming projects, advertiser preferences — the mere thought of Han Yeo-reum stealing away everything she had built was unbearable.

'At least it was a period drama....'

It was a small mercy that Gimyodam offered viewers nothing to spark consumer desire — no makeup, no fashion, nothing to sell.

The fashion world is merciless. Even someone leading the trends one moment gets tossed aside the instant someone hotter appears.

Ki Joo-ye refused to be the one cast aside. Stealing Han Yeo-reum's spot might be beyond her — but she intended to hold her ground, defiantly, and keep what was hers.

"Find out what Han Yeo-reum is wearing at the Le-el Style Awards. Then get it taken away from her."

Before the words had even finished leaving her mouth, the MC's voice came calling for Ki Joo-ye from the stage. In an instant, her expression transformed, and she strode out into the lights.

"Ki Joo-ye-!"

Cheers erupted from every corner of the hall at the sound of her name. Looking out over the packed seats, Ki Joo-ye smiled in pure happiness.

This was the site of Ki Joo-ye's fan meeting in China.

With her rock-solid Chinese fanbase, Ki Joo-ye planned to drag in the power of Chinese money — and use it to suffocate Han Yeo-reum.